Intervening in the cycle of poverty, poor housing and poor health: the role of housing providers in enhancing tenants' mental wellbeing.

Poverty, poor housing and poor health are complexly interconnected in a cycle that has proven resistant to intervention by housing providers or policy makers. Research often focuses on the impacts of the physical housing defects, particularly upon rates of (physical) illness and disease. There has been comparatively little research into the ways in which housing services can underpin the generation of positive health and, especially, wellbeing. Drawing on qualitative data from 75 tenants in the social and private rented sectors, this paper describes the findings of a research project that tracked tenants' experiences across their first year in a new tenancy in Greater Glasgow, Scotland. The project collected data on tenants' perceptions of housing and housing service quality, financial coping and health and wellbeing, which was analysed using the principles of Realist Evaluation to elucidate impacts and causal pathways. Being able to establish a sense of home was key to tenants' wellbeing. The home provided many tenants with a recuperative space in which to shelter from daily stressors and was a source of autonomy and social status. A sense of home was underpinned by aspects of the housing service, property quality and affordability which are potentially amenable to intervention by housing providers. These findings raise questions about the extent to which social housing providers and the private rental market in the UK are able to meet the needs of vulnerable tenants. They suggest that approaches to housing provision that go beyond providing a basic dwelling are needed to successfully intervene in the cycle of poverty, poor housing and poor health.

Housing as a social determinant of health and wellbeing: developing an empirically-informed realist theoretical framework.

BACKGROUND: The role of housing as a social determinant of health is well-established, but the causal pathways are poorly understood beyond the direct effects of physical housing defects. For low-income, vulnerable households there are particular challenges in creating a sense of home in a new tenancy which may have substantial effects on health and wellbeing. This study examines the role of these less tangible aspects of the housing experience for tenants in the social and private rented sectors in west central Scotland. METHODS: The paper analyses quantitative data from a mixed methods, longitudinal study of tenants from three housing organisations, collected across the first year of their tenancy. The paper postulates causal hypotheses on the basis of staff interviews and then uses a Realist Research approach to test and refine these into a theoretical framework for the connections between tenants' broader experience of housing and their health and wellbeing. RESULTS: Housing service provision, tenants' experience of property quality and aspects of neighbourhood are all demonstrated to be significantly correlated with measures of of health and wellbeing. Analysis of contextual factors provides additional detail within the theoretical framework, offering a basis for further empirical work. CONCLUSIONS: The findings provide an empirically-informed realist theoretical framework for causal pathways connecting less tangible aspects of the housing experience to health and wellbeing. Applying this within housing policy and practice would facilitate a focus on housing as a public health intervention, with potential for significant impacts on the lives of low-income and vulnerable tenants. The framework also offers a basis for further research to refine our understanding of housing as a social determinant of health.

The role of alcohol price in young adult drinking cultures in Scotland.

Minimum Unit Pricing (MUP) is one of the Scottish Government's key policy options to reduce alcohol consumption and related harm. Although strongly evidenced for efficacy in reducing headline population level consumption, efficacy in changing the role of alcohol in Scottish culture is unknown. Questions remain as to how MUP will play across population subgroups with different sensitivities to price. In this paper we explore the views of the young adult population and situate the influence of price paid for alcohol alongside broader cultural drivers of consumption. Qualitative data from two studies investigating the role of alcohol in the transition to adulthood from 130 participants (aged 16-30) are analysed to situate the influence of price paid in shaping drinking styles and practices. Findings highlight how considerations of price paid for alcohol compete with non-financial considerations associated with choosing to drink excessively, moderately or not at all. Two broad categories of response to potential price increases were anticipated by drinkers which indicate that young adults are not a homogenous group in relation to price sensitivity. These differences highlight the potential for variation in subgroup responses to a pricing policy conceived to be effective at a population level.

Hybridity in the housing sector: Examining impacts on social and private rented sector tenants in Scotland.

Housing Associations in many countries exhibit increasing levels of 'hybridity', as reductions in state financing for social housing, exacerbated by austerity policies since the 2008 crash, have instigated 'enterprising' approaches to maintaining income. Alongside this, hybrid organisations have emerged in the Private Rented Sector (PRS), responding to sectoral growth and consequent increases in vulnerable households entering private renting. These developing hybridities have been considered at a strategic level, but there has been little exploration of the impacts on tenants. This paper examines two organisations, operating across the social and private rented sectors, to elucidate potential implications for tenants. The research suggests that different forms of hybridity can affect tenant outcomes and, moreover, that examining such impacts is important in understanding hybridity itself. Furthermore, the study suggests that emerging forms of hybridity, particularly in the PRS, may be blurring the boundaries between housing sectors, with implications for policy and research.

What happened when Scottish women were given advance supplies of emergency contraception? A survey and qualitative study of women's views and experiences.

The Lothian Emergency Contraception Project in Scotland was a radical intervention in which women aged 16-29 were given 5 packs of emergency contraception (EC) to keep at home. We use survey and qualitative interview data to describe how women used the project packs and their views of advance supplies. The women's accounts suggest that concerns that eased access to emergency contraception will lead to repeated use and risky sex appear to be largely unfounded. Women were pleased to be offered the packs, which were reported as having practical advantages and also sparing them the difficulty of negotiating a sometimes awkward consultation. Respondents explained how they used their packs of EC and in their accounts used justifications, repetition and distancing to emphasise that they would not take risks with contraception or sexually transmitted infections. We interpret the data in the light of the observation that EC has an anomalous role in contraception and the work of applied linguists Candlin and Lucas who have demonstrated the difficulties inherent in the family planning consultation.